Killing Games
by SkyeRose
Summary: Episode revision for "The Gamekeeper," S2. What if Sam had been sent into Jack's memory? What if Sam's memories were able to be accessed? Well, you're gonna find out. LOL. Story is better than summary. Suspension of disbelief may be required. SamJack!
1. Chapter 1

**Killing Games**

**Disclaimer: Only my stuff is mine.**

**A/N: 'Kay, so this is an episode tag (or replacement, whatever) to "The Gamekeeper" season 2. I don't know if anyone has already done this, but I've always wanted to try. Not a really shippy episode (yes, its SamJack, people. LOL), but I'm about to make it one.**

**I've always wondered what would have happened if Sam and Jack had ended up in the memory together instead of Jack and Teal'c or Sam and Daniel. Mind you, I was about eight when I came up with this idea, but I'm just getting around to writing it. LOL.**

**IMPORTANT: Ignore the fact that in the episode Sam's memory couldn't be accessed because of the protein-marker. In my story, her memories can be accessed.**

**Also, I pretty much changed Jack's whole memory. The location is the same and John and Kawalsky are too, but something big changed. In the actual episode Teal'c is named Thomas and they all have memories of him being on the team. In this story, Sam used to be on the team, but she and Jack became involved. It's fanfiction people, please allow some liberties? LMAO. I also haven't seen this episode in awhile, so everything written is off of memory. Mucho sorry for any discontinuities.**

**Not sure how long this will be. All depends on how you and I like the story.**

**ENJOY!!! (Suspension of disbelief is required!)**

Sam jerked backwards, trying to throw herself away from the chair's oncoming "tentacles"…only…there was no chair. Sam was no longer standing in the chamber with the chairs, rather she was in a large grassy clearing surrounded by trees.

"What the…?" she murmured, turning in a circle, taking in her surroundings. No way that this was real. She took a deep breath…it _smelled_ real. It _looked _real too. The sun was bright as it beat down from overhead and the grass swayed in the pine-scented wind.

A heavy hand on her shoulder had her spinning around, automatically lifting the weapon that she suddenly noticed lay across her chest. The gun had a funny feel to it, long and heavier than she was used to. Nevertheless, she swung it in front of her, prepared to shoot.

"Whoa, Carter. Easy." Jack took a small step back and raised his hands.

"Colonel?" Sam frowned. The Colonel was dressed in all black with a black beanie on his head. Definitely not what he had been wearing the last time she saw him. _'Which was about, oh, two minutes ago.'_ She reminded herself, still looking suspiciously at the man in front of her.

"The one and only." Jack shrugged, lowering his hands. He held her eyes for a moment longer than was probably necessary and Sam felt that familiar shiver run up her spine. She would never, ever admit it…but Jack O'Neill did things to her heart that no one else ever had.

"Wanna lower the gun?" Jack cocked his head to the side, humor dancing in his eyes.

Sam looked down, surprised. She had forgotten she was pointing the loaded weapon at her CO. "Yes, sir." Carter lowered the gun and glanced around. "Any idea where we are?"

"No…but there's something about this place…" Jack bounced on the balls of his feet and looked around, a small frown gracing his handsome features.

Sam watched him for a moment before tearing her gaze away. Not a good thing to get caught _gazing_ at your CO. Even if said CO was the best-looking man you'd ever seen.

Sam turned, also taking in her surroundings and came face to face with a young man. "Colonel!" Sam said, startled. She raised her gun and pointed it at the stranger. Jack spun around at her voice, gun raised, and promptly froze.

"Captain. Lieutenant." The young man said curtly, glaring at Sam. "Lower your weapon, Lieutenant. That's an order."

Sam glared right back at the man, gun still pointed at his chest.

"Delay that order, Carter." Jack's brow was creased in a perturbed frown and he moved to stand next to Sam.

The stranger raised his eyebrows in a challenge. "Captain? Since when do you give the orders? Last time I checked, _I_ was the Colonel." He cocked his head in silent challenge.

"Sir?" Sam questioned.

"What?" the stranger turned his attention back to Sam.

Sam's glare intensified. "Who the hell are you?"

"That's insubordination, O'Neill." The stranger growled, unaware of the identical looks of shock on the faces of the two people in front of him. "Besides, I don't remember you being invited on this mission."

Sam blinked at him. Her brain was in overdrive trying to figure out what was going on. Glancing quickly at Jack, she saw him staring at the man with a look of confusion and…recognition?

Jack took a deep breath. "John." It was a statement, not a question.

"Duh." The other man narrowed his eyes. "Jesus, Jack…what's gotten into you two?"

Jack's face drained of all color. "Dammit…"

"Colonel?" Sam glanced at Jack in concern.

"What the hell is this?" Jack burst out. "What the hell is going on?"

John took a step back at Jack's outburst. "Captain!"

"No. This isn't happening. I must be hallucinating." Jack pressed his palms against his eyes. "Carter, pinch me. I need to wake up. Now."

Before Sam could respond, John cut across her. "Jack, what the hell is up with you? Insubordination from you I expect…but, Lieutenant…I expected better from you. And since when do you call her 'Carter,' Jack? She hasn't been 'Carter' for almost four years. What's wrong with you?"

Sam's heart jolted and she felt her stomach rise into her throat. Jack tensed next to her. "What's wrong with…?" Jack's eyes darkened. "What's wrong here is that you're supposed to be dead."

"Geez, Jack. What a way to start the day." A boisterous voice came from behind John.

Sam and Jack turned, jaws dropping. "Kawalsky?!" They exclaimed simultaneously.

Looking between Sam and Jack like they had grown extra heads, Kawalsky nodded. "Um…yeah?" He frowned. "This isn't like you guys at all. 'Specially you, Sam."

"Charlie…you're supposed to be dead too." Jack looked at his friend for a long time. "East Germany."

John squinted at him. "Yeah. Intel looks good. Boris is inside; no snipers, just two guards. Easy mission. Relax, Jack. Today's not the day we die."

"As a matter of fact, today _is_ the day you die." Jack's voice was harsh as he looked at the two men in front of him.

When no one moved, Sam took a deep breath. "Um…John?" She decided playing along for right now was in everybody's best interests. The man turned his attention to her. "Could you excuse us for a moment?" John looked at her hard for a moment before nodding grudgingly.

"We'll unpack the gear. Hurry it up, though. Missions are no place for marital squabbles. That's the reason you chose to transfer off the team in the first place."

Sam nodded like she understood a word he was saying and moved off towards the trees away from her "team," Jack following close behind. Sam turned to him, her expression carefully measured. Internally, she was panicking. Marital problems? They were married? What the hell was going on?!

"Carter…" Jack started. "I went on this mission in 1982. I was in East Germany and we were supposed to grab a Russian spy who'd been holed up in that house down there." Jack gestured with his chin towards the barely visible house to Sam's left. "But it went all kinds of bad. Sniper came out of nowhere and killed John. Killed another member of my team too." Jack glanced back to where John and Kawalsky were. "But I don't see him." Jack looked back at Sam, understanding and dread reflected in his expression. "Looks like you're his replacement."

Sam shook her head slightly, trying to process everything. "Sir…I know the Goa-uld have experimented with time travel before…what if they succeeded? What if we've gone back in time?" Sam paused for a moment. "No, no that's not it. I wasn't here in 1982." Another pause. "Those chairs…"

"The chairs? What about the chairs?" Jack took a step closer to Sam to make sure the others couldn't hear.

"Colonel…I think someone's giving you the chance to change what happened." Sam's eyes met Jack's. "I think that we're in those chairs. I think that, in order to get out, we have to…play the game."

"The game?" Jack questioned.

"For lack of a better word, sir." Sam raised her eyebrows, waiting for his reaction.

"What if I say no? What if I don't "play along?"

"I don't think we have a choice, sir."

Jack looked at her for a moment, realizing just how close they were. He was barely a foot in front of her, her head tilted towards his.

And then it hit him.

They were married in this "game." _Married_! Where the hell did that come from? He hadn't even known Carter back then! In 1982 she was still in college!

"Married?" he breathed, not realizing he had spoken out loud.

Sam worried the inside of her lower lip and nodded. Yeah…she still hadn't really grasped that either. "Guess that's why I'm not on the team."

"Hm." Jack nodded his head once before turning away from Carter. He needed to put some distance between himself and…the _wife_. Lord help him.

"Captain? You and the misses ready?" John raised an inquiring eyebrow.

Jack sensed Carter come up behind him and whispered to her. "This is too real. Every detail…it's all the same."

"Except I'm here." Sam added, a note of dread in her voice.

"Except you're here." Jack confirmed. "So…we play." It was a statement, not a question.

"We play." Sam nodded and took a deep breath.

**TBC**

**A/N: Nothing exciting, I know. Bear with me people. It's coming. LOL.**

**R.I.P. Dom Deluise**

**You Will Be Missesd**


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2: Watching Her Die**

**Disclaimer: Only my stuff is mine. Pathetic…LOL**

**A/N: Wow! Thank you all so much! I was not expecting such a serious interest! LOL. I hope I can live up to the expectations…**

**QUESTION: What's the deal with Stargate Universe? Daniel and Jack are gonna be in some of the episodes according to imdb. Walter too. LOL. What the hell is this series about? I honestly have no interest in watching it, but I'll watch episodes 1,2, and 6 just for our guys. ******

**Anyone have any info on it? And, because I can't help it, I wonder if they'll give something away about Sam and Jack in the series…like they did in the deleted scene from "Trio?" (Stargate Atlantis). Maybe Jack'll have a wedding ring or something. Sigh…one can dream, no? LMAO**

**Thanks!!!**

**ENJOY!!!**

The sound of glass shattering rose goosebumps on the back of Sam's neck. It wasn't the actually sound that made her uneasy, it was the fact that this was Colonel O'Neill's memory. She was experiencing everything he was experiencing that day. If she had done her math right, she was still in high school at the time of this mission.

"Go!" John ordered, breaking Sam out of her thoughts.

Sam stood and ran to the other wall, confident that the Colonel was covering her. Once behind the low wall, she turned and began firing at the enemy. She saw John run out and moved to cover him, but she wasn't quick enough. Sam saw his body arc forwards as his chest exploded.

Jack watched the scene from twenty years ago play out again. He quelched his natural instinct to immediately run to his friend and, instead, focused on taking down the enemy sniper. Aiming carefully, Jack pulled the trigger, feeling every emotion he had felt the first time around. Fury, sorrow, bloodlust, and other nameless feelings coursed through him.

Whipping around to see where his second was, he felt his heart plummet into his stomach. Sam had moved away from the wall and was now dragging John with one hand and shooting with the other.

"Carter!" Jack shouted, barely able to hear himself over the sounds of the gunfire. Jack covered her as best he could, but there was still a lot of open space and it was with a cold horror that Jack realized the rest of the team had been neutralized. It was only him and Carter.

And they were outnumbered.

"Sam!" he yelled, desperation evident in his voice. The world seemed to slow down and Jack saw everything happen with an out-of-body sense of surrealism. Sam's eyes crashed into his with an impossible intensity. She knew what was going to happen a second before it did.

So did Jack.

And he did everything he could to prevent it.

The barrel of Sam's handgun locked; she was out of ammo. Throwing it aside, she gripped John's collar with both hands and redoubled her efforts at pulling him. Jack pushed himself to his feet, the only thought in his mind was getting to Sam. He ran faster than he'd ever run in his life. He was close; close enough that he actually believed he would get to her before the inevitable happened. That was his first mistake.

He was barely three feet from her when he saw her eyes widen and her grip of John slacken. Her body arched toward Jack and her knees gave out. She was falling in slow motion, her eyes slipping shut and her hair bouncing softly as her knees hit the ground.

Jack threw himself in front of her, shielding her from any more attacks as much as could. Wrapping an arm around her back, he stopped her head from hitting the ground. "Sam! Sam, dammit, open your eyes!" Heedless of the bullets flying around him, Jack fumbled to feel her pulse. "Sam, please!" _'No, no, no, no!' _Jack's mind screamed at him. _'Not her, please, not her.'_

Sam's eyelids fluttered open. Her usual bright blue color was dull and grey. The eyes of someone who knew there was no time. "Sir…"

"Carter—Sam, please. You have to hang on." Jack felt the tell-tale stinging at the corners of his eyes.

"I…can't…" Her brow furrowed as her mouth worked to form words. "I'm…so…sorry…" Jack felt Sam's body slacken as the tension left it.

Eyes wide, Jack stared in childish confusion. She couldn't be gone. No, she _couldn't_ be. This wasn't real. This wasn't possible.

He refused to believe it.

As a single tear fell, the world seemed to shift. He was falling forward when a small, but strong hand stopped him. There was no sound of gunfire and the acrid smell of gunpowder wasn't hanging in the air.

What the hell?

Jack opened his eyes and came face to face with the most beautiful sight he'd ever seen. Sam was looking at him, her eyes wide with panic and confusion and relief. One of her hands was pushing on his chest to keep him upright and the other was over her own heart, feeling it beat beneath her fingers.

"Sir?" Her voice was breathless and vulnerable.

"Jesus." Jack exhaled and grabbed Sam's shoulders. She was solid; she was real. He looked into her eyes for a split second before throwing his soldier instincts out the window. Jack pulled Sam against his chest and held her there, breathing in her scent and feeling her heart beat in time with his.

Sam wrapped her arms around his back and held on. The pain had been unimaginable. She had _known_ she was dead…but…

"You're not." Jack said as if reading her thoughts. "You're not dead." Sam closed her eyes against the emotion in his voice. When she'd been lying there, looking up into his face…she could have sworn that she'd seen tears. And that scared her.

Or, rather, what that could mean scared her. What if her feelings for her CO weren't as fruitless as she'd convinced herself? Sam shook her head. Now was not the time.

"No PDA's, please." A familiar, sarcastic voice said from behind them.

"Yeah, we get it. You're in love, you're married; stop bragging." An equally familiar teasing voice added.

Sam and Jack pulled away from each other out of sheer habit and stared in disbelief at the two men who had spoken. "John?" Jack asked. _'Déjà vu.'_ He thought sardonically.

"That's colonel to you, Captain." The small smile on the man's lips took the sting out of the comment.

Not breaking eye contact with the man in front of him, Jack pushed himself to his feet and held out a hand to help Carter. She took it and allowed him to pull her up, ignoring the electricity that shot through her at his touch.

"Jack? Sam? You guys okay?" Kawalsky cocked his head, running calculating looks over his friends.

"It started over." Sam's voice was hushed so that only Jack could hear her.

"Looks like." Jack replied.

"Sir…sir, I think that whatever this is…_whoever _is doing this…maybe they're giving you a chance to change what happened."

"Change…? Carter, this happened almost twenty years ago. I can't change anything." Jack said, still glaring at John.

"Not in reality, no. But…in here, in your mind, maybe you can. Maybe the idea is to assuage whatever lingering guilt you have over this mission. Experiencing it all over again, _changing_ it might give you some emotional closure." Sam didn't sound entirely convinced, but at that point, Jack would take all he could get.

"What if I just walk away? What if I refuse to do anything?" Jack didn't bother lowering his voice this time. The frowns on John and Kawlasky's faces deepened.

"Well, whoever is doing this, might try and force you to participate. But…I suppose there's no way of telling for certain unless--,"

"Unless we try it." Jack turned away from John and looked towards the sky. "I quit! Do you hear me? I won't play along with your sick little game!"

Silence greeted his words and he felt Sam shift next to him. "Colonel, look!" she grabbed his arm and pointed to her right. Jack followed her gaze and saw three cloaked figures standing a good distance away. They appeared to be watching them.

"What the hell?" Jack took a step forward, but stopped when someone called to him.

"You must continue the mission!" Jack and Sam whirled around, weapons raised. A tall, round man was standing near John, though the latter gave no sign that he was aware of the stranger.

"Who the hell are you?"

The stranger looked a little flustered by Jack's hostile reaction, but recovered quickly. "Allow me to introduce myself; I am the keeper." He raised his chin importantly and tugged on his lapels.

Jack jerked his head in annoyance. "The "keeper" of what?"

"The keeper of all that is around you. Of all that is and all that might be." The keeper smiled and glanced between Sam and Jack. "The desired change in relation--," the stranger started still looking between the two officers, but Sam, seeing where that line of conversation was going, quickly interrupted.

"Why should we continue the mission?" Sam cleared her throat. That had come out a lot louder than she'd intended.

"Because…" he paused dramatically. "It is the second chance you have always wanted." He directed this to both of them, making Sam think that he was talking about more than the mission.

"You've got to be kidding me!" Jack burst out. He hadn't caught onto the double meaning that Sam had. "This was the most botched operation I've been involved with. What makes you think I wanna watch my friends get killed over and over again?"

"You have always wished to do it again in order to do it differently." The keeper answered simply, folding his hands in front of him.

John spoke up, seemingly unaware that the keeper was there. "We're going with or without you two."

Jack stared hard at the keeper for a long moment. "See ya." He turned on his heel.

"Alright, have it your way." John said, motioning to the other members of the team.

"But you must go with them!" the keeper called after Jack. "It's the only way to evoke the change you have desired for so long!"

Jack whirled. "I can't change the outcome if you keep changing the rules!"

Sam had been studying the keeper while the argument played out. He was a nervous man; naïve. He was also completely ignorant to the psychological damage he would inevitably cause by making the Colonel relive this mission over and over again.

"But there are so many fantastic variations that you could try. Perhaps this time, you might throw yourself in front of the bullet that kills your beloved? Of course," He half-turned, talking more to himself than to Sam and Jack. "The beloved was not present in the _actual_ memory…" he paused. "Never the mind. She is now, yes?" he turned back to them, an impossibly hopeful expression on his face, and clapped his hands. "Are you ready to continue?"

Jack shook his head, eyes on fire. "Never." He hissed. "Carter, sit down. We're done playing your game."

Sam didn't move, eyes fixed unseeingly in front of her. Her brain was working overtime; did she really just hear what she thought she just heard? _'Of course not.'_ She answered herself. _'This man is obviously insane. Nothing he's said is true. He's just trying to manipulate you.'_

"Very well." The gamekeeper said, his face becoming hard. "Have it your way." He turned to walk away, but turned back, eyes directed at Sam. "We shall see if you are more open to changing your past."

"Hey, you leave her out of this!" Jack yelled, reaching out a hand to grab the keeper's collar.

"Too late." The keeper disappeared.

"Colonel, I think we should--!" her sentence turned into a scream as the world around them ripped and twisted. "Sir!" Sam cried as the ground opened up beneath them.

Jack didn't have time to yell before he was back on solid ground, Carter stumbling against him.

"Whoa." Jack said flatly.

"I'll say." Sam swayed slightly, holding her head. "Ugh…I feel like someone's been digging around in my brain."

"Precisely." The keeper's voice rang out clearly though he was nowhere in sight. "Your worst memory, my dear, was not one that put you in a position to change anything. I have developed a scenario based on what you were present for and what you _could have been_ present for. Combined…I have created this."

Bright sunlight made starbursts appear in front of Jack and Sam's eyes. They appeared to be on a sidewalk adjacent to a busy intersection. They were standing in between a congested street and a large brick wall. Sounds of impatient honking and annoyed shouts of "Go!" filled the summer-scented air.

"Carter?" Jack said, squinting at his oddly still second. "What was your worst memory?"

"No…" her voice was barely above a ragged whisper, her eyes wide and terrified. "No, not this. Please."

"Carter?" Jack turned to fully face her. "What's going on?"

Sam didn't answer. Her gaze was focused across the street, her hands visibly shaking. Jack followed her line of vision and looked curiously at the woman who seemed to be frightening Carter so much. Jack cocked his head…there was something…_familiar_…about the woman. She had light blonde hair and he could tell, even from this distance, that her eyes were a bright blue. Hell, if he didn't know better, he'd say he was looking at a future Carter.

Carter.

Oh…_no_.

**TBC**

**A/N: This story on a total mind of its own. I have AP exams tomorrow and I'm totally freaking out, so please excuse any liberties I took with the episodes. LOL.**

**Please R&R!!**


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3: Inability**

**Disclaimer: Only my stuff is mine.**

**A/N: Thank you all so much for the reviews!! **

**Enjoy!!**

That woman had to be Carter's mother. He didn't know the details surrounding Carter's family, but he did know that her mother had died when she was a teenager. _'That bastard.'_ Jack thought savagely. _'How _dare _he make her relive this.'_

Jack spun to stand in front of Sam, blocking the street from view. "Carter, look at me." When Sam didn't move, he hooked a finger under her chin and forced her to look into his eyes. "This isn't real. We don't have to play along with this son of a bitch."

"I…never saw this. My father came home…he told me…" Sam trailed off, desperately trying to stop the tears that were threatening to fall. "I can't watch her die, sir."

"I know. You won't have to. This is going to end." Jack opened his mouth to shout for the keeper when a woman's voice cut through the air.

"Taxi! Taxi, over here!" Jack turned and saw Carter's mother waving her hand frantically, standing on the very edge of the sidewalk.

"Mom," Sam stepped around Jack, her voice quiet. "Mommy…?" Sam took a step towards the street, tears running unchecked down her cheeks.

"Carter, stop." Jack ordered. "This isn't real." Sam saw it an instant before Jack did. Another taxi was speeding up behind her mother; the driver was distracted, looking down at what was presumably his radio.

"No!" Sam screamed. "Mom! Watch out! Get out of there!" Heedless of the cars that were speeding down the road, Sam bolted from her position on the sidewalk and made to run to her mother.

Jack reacted without thinking, wrapping his arms around her waist and pulling her back against him to keep her out of traffic. She fought viciously, clawing at his hands to get to her mother. "Mom!" she screamed again.

The older, blonde woman looked up, blue eyes meeting blue as her mother recognized her. "Sammie?" the woman called back. "Sam, what are you doing--!" The rest of the sentence was drowned out by the blaring of a horn and the screeching of tires. The older Carter turned just as the car reached her.

There was no time for her to scream.

There was no time for anything.

Time slowed down as Sam struggled to break away from Jack. Her mother's body was frozen in the instant before impact. Sam spun around, burying her face in Jack's chest as the sickening sound of metal meeting flesh and bone echoed across the suddenly silent street. Sam's fingers dug into Jack's back as she screamed, trying desperately to drown out the liquid impact of flesh to street.

Jack held Sam tight as her anguished cries spiraled into the sky. He felt her knees give out, but held onto her, keeping her upright. He was going to kill that bastard. He was going to rip him apart with his bare hands.

There was no death or torture painful enough for what Jack wanted to inflict on the "keeper."

"Sam." His voice was low, lips pressed to her neck. "Sam, listen to me. Focus on my voice. This didn't happen. _He_ made it up. It never happened."

"Yes, it did." Sam's barely managed to speak around her body-wracking sobs. "I read the-the reports. I saw the police photos even though I wasn't supposed to."

Jack closed his eyes as his heart ached for his second in command. He couldn't stand to see her in pain.

And this was the worst kind of pain imaginable.

"Sam, I'm sorry. I'm so sorry." His hand was tangled in her hair and her head was still pressed against his chest. Her sobs were quieting and he could feel her pulling herself back together. He wanted to tell her that it was okay to cry in front of him. He wouldn't think any the less of her.

As if he could ever think less of her.

"Sam!" a new voice rang out. Sam stiffened and pulled away from Jack, dread icing through her veins.

Jack turned to see who had spoken, noticing that the setting had changed. They were no longer standing on a sidewalk; rather, they were in a house. A man who looked to be a little older than Jack was standing in the doorway of a large foyer.

"In here!" A voice that was unmistakably Sam's (though slightly higher) called from a little ways into the house.

"No…" Sam whispered, following the voice at a near run. Jack followed and found himself standing in the kitchen opposite a young girl with long blonde hair, who was putting cookies on a plate. Jack realized with a certain amount of trepidation that he was looking at a teenaged Sam. _'This must be what was actually in Sam's memory about her mother's death._' Jack's gut twisted with the knowledge.

"Why are you crying?" Young Sam asked curiously as she glanced up at her father, who was now standing next to Jack. Unlike the other scenarios, Sam and Jack, apparently, couldn't be seen.

Jack looked at Sam and saw that she was staring at her father, her expression mirroring that of her younger self. "Where's mom?" The nervously asked, tear-filled question was spoken in unison by the two Sam's.

"Sam…I'm sorry." Her father's voice was quiet, defeated…afraid.

The expression on the Sam's faces changed so quickly Jack took a step back in surprise. Pure fury flashed in the blue eyes and their mouths twisted. "You were never there for us." They said, the double voices causing a creepy echo. "You always chose your job over us and now look what's happened! Mom's dead." Both Sams took a step towards their father, the younger one throwing the spatula down with a metallic bang. "You killed her! You killed mom!" Sam screamed, before suddenly spinning around to face Jack.

"Colonel, I can't stop it! I never said this!" As if she were a marionette, Sam was spun to once again face her father. "I'll never forgive you for this." Her voice was as sharp as a dagger.

It took Jack less than a second to make up his mind. Nothing in these _simulations_ made any sense, so his actions shouldn't either, right? He grabbed Sam by her jacket and spun her to face him. "Dammit, Sam." He growled before pulling her against him and sealing his lips over hers.

He felt Sam freeze, battling between reality and this sadistic virtual reality. He knew the moment that she had won. She relaxed against him, her own hands moving to grip his collar. Jack, who had been expecting her to pull away, was shocked when she kissed him back with as much ferocity as he was kissing her with.

When they broke apart, Jack rested his forehead against Sam's, both panting slightly. "How'd you know that would work?" Sam asked, breathless.

"I didn't." Jack replied with a little shrug, just as breathless.

Sam laughed softly before lifting her head and looking around. They were standing in a garden. Beautiful, exotic flowers seemed to bloom from everywhere, the perfumed scents making the tension in Sam ebb a little. "Where are we?" she asked, not entirely sure that she wanted to know. "Sir?" she turned back to Jack when he didn't reply.

Expecting to see him looking around the garden, she was shocked to find him staring at her with an intensity Sam had never seen before. "You didn't push me away." His voice held a note of disbelief.

Sam sighed. She wanted desperately to play dumb, but knew it would hurt them both if she did. "No." she replied quietly. "I didn't."

"Why?" Jack cocked his head, his eyes searing into her.

"Because, I--," she broke off as her voice failed her. Looking back into his eyes, she saw shocked understanding bloom.

"Oh."

"Yeah." Sam laughed bitterly. "Oh."

The moment stretched between them, both just staring at each other. Sam felt her cheeks burn and looked away, humiliated. Her commanding officer now knew exactly how she felt about him. Oh, boy. She was so fired when they got back to Earth.

"Hey." Jack said softly, brushing his fingers over her cheek. "Me too."

"You…too?" Sam repeated intelligently. "Colonel, you--," Jack cut her off by pressing his lips to hers again.

When he pulled away, humor was dancing in his eyes. "I tried to deny it for a long time, Carter. It didn't work."

Sam couldn't believe what she was hearing. "I never thought…" She trailed, shaking her head. "What now?"

Jack grinned. "Now…I do this." He leaned toward her once more and Sam closed her eyes in anticipation.

Not even a second had passed when Sam's eyes snapped open again. Jack was no longer in front of her. A slithering sensation along her arms and legs caused her to look down. The black tentacles of the "simulation chairs" were sliding back into the chair, releasing her from her bonds.

Jumping away from the chair, she turned her head to see Jack, Daniel, and Teal'c all jumping away from their chairs too. "Whoa." Jack said, taking several steps away from the devices.

"Indeed." Teal'c said, looking shaken. Daniel didn't say anything, but his face was white and he looked like he was about to be physically ill.

"Let's get out of here." Jack said. He turned and came face to face with three cloaked figures. "Jesus!" he exclaimed jumping away from them.

"Please." The one in the middle spoke softly. "Tell us what this place is. It is in your memories and we cannot identify it."

The team looked at each other nervously. Sam stepped forward. "This is your world." She spoke gently, wondering just how much this keeper had kept from his people.

"No." the one in the middle spoke again. "Our world is overrun with pestilence. No, this cannot be our home."

"It is." Jack said forcefully, standing next to Sam. "If you don't believe us, just ask your keeper, or whatever."

The cloaked figures turned and whispered to each other. "Show us. Show us in your memories."

"What do you mean 'our memories?'" Jack asked skeptically. "We're not getting back in those things." He shuddered involuntarily.

"We don't have to." Daniel spoke quietly, sounding utterly spent. "We're still in them."

"_What_?" Jack whipped around.

"Jack, if we can still see these _people_…we must still be in them." Daniel's eyes were fixed on the ground. What the hell had he seen in that simulation?

"The how the hell do we get out?!" Jack exclaimed, frustrated.

"Stop!" A loud, agitated voice shouted from behind Jack. "You are ruining _everything_!"

The team turned to see the keeper hurrying towards them, his hands folded over his round stomach.

"Ruining…?" Sam took several steps forward, looking very much like she was going to strangle him. "You son of a bitch; you are keeping these people locked away for no reason! Your world is fine!"

The keeper took a step back at Sam's fury, but didn't back down. "Our world was overcome with disease and ruin because of them!" he pointed an accusing finger at the cloaked figures. "They used all of our resources and trampled our land! If they are let out, they will ruin it all over again!"

"You knew about this." Jack stepped up next to Sam, ignoring the way her proximity made him feel with difficulty. "You knew that your world was thriving again and you kept it from them."

Sam smiled cruelly. "Your name is fitting." Her voice was harsh and she took a threatening step towards the keeper. "Let them out."

"No. They will ruin my world." The keeper faltered under Sam's glare.

"Not your world." Sam took another step, forcing the keeper to take a step backwards, his back hitting a chair. "Theirs."

The keeper spluttered and tried to move to his right. Jack stepped up, blocking that escape. Daniel and Teal'c came up on Sam's other side, effectively cornering the alien. Sun blocked by the shadows of the four livid people in front of him, the keeper blanched. "Yes. Alright." The portly man closed his eyes and appeared to be concentrating very hard.

"And no more funny busi--," Jack's warning was cut off as a bright flash of light blinded all of them.

Sam opened her eyes and was hit with a sense of deja-vu. _'Well, duh.'_ She thought. _'You just did this.'_ She stumbled away from the chair, unsteady on her feet. She looked over and saw the Colonel, Daniel, and Teal'c hurrying away from their chairs as well.

"Are we out? Are we out?" Jack asked as he patted himself down experimentally.

"Even if we weren't, Jack, I don't think that would do anything." Daniel said, a little of his color returning to his face.

Jack paused what he was doing, eyes immediately going to Sam's. Daniel was right. Sensations had been very…_real_…in the virtual world. Sam's cheeks flushed and she looked away. She had been so close to admitting the one thing she wasn't allowed to…_had_ admitted it to a certain extent.

And he had reciprocated.

"How can this be?" A high-pitched, distressed voice came from Sam's right. SG-1 whirled to see the native people of the planet pushing themselves away from their bonds.

"Is this real?" Another asked.

"It cannot be. Unless…unless you lied to us!" The last part was shouted.

"I had no choice." The keeper materialized near the doors leading out of the greenhouse. "You would have destroyed our world again! You _will_ destroy our world again!"

"Oh, give them a chance!" Jack said. "Teach them to take care of it. Teach them to _live_."

The keeper didn't say anything, merely whirled on his heel and led the way out of the garden. The natives followed him eagerly, wanting to see the world that had been hidden from them for so long. As they emerged into the world that seemed so new to them various gasps of delight and surprise filled the air. They began to pick the vibrant flowers that covered the landscape.

"No! No, don't _pick_ them! Yes, they're very pretty, but they will die if you—Stop that!" the keeper shouted to two women who were pulling out the flowers by the handful and throwing them into the air.

Sam, Jack, Daniel, and Teal'c all shared an exhausted, amused glance before turning their backs on the joyous scene. "Let's go home." Jack said leading the way to the gate.

"No arguments there, sir." Sam shook her head wearily. "Sir, can't I just--?"

"No." Jack cut her off, knowing what she was going to say.

"But he deserves it."

"Yes, Carter, he does." _'After what he put you through, I would do it for you.'_ Jack thought savagely. "But killing him would create a hostile situation that the general probably won't like."

Sam sighed. "I know."

Daniel and Teal'c glanced at each other, sharing knowing glances. As Daniel pressed the symbols that would take them back home, Jack put a hand on Sam's arm holding her back.

"Carter…"

"Sir, don't." Sam averted her eyes.

"Sam." Her eyes shot to Jack's. "Did you mean what you said in there?"

She didn't hesitate. She couldn't. "Yes."

Jack nodded and turned to face the looming blue puddle. "No more status quo."

And they stepped through.

**TBC**

**A/N: One more chapter to go, though, this is the last "chapter." The next one is going to be an epilogue. Thank you all very much! Please R&R!!**


	4. Sorry

**Okay, so I kinda lied. I thought there was going to be an epilogue, but I was rereading the story and I think it's okay where it is. Basically, this is what happens. Sam and Jack get permission to pursue a relationship and everybody lives happily ever after, as in all my stories. LOL.**

**I've got some new ideas for stories, so be on the lookout!! ******

**Thank you so much for reading!!**


End file.
